Karnataka: Seizure not shown in Bengaluru Bitcoin puzzle

Despite making a public announcement in January 2021 it seized 31 Bitcoins worth Rs 9 crore from a hacker arrested in November 2020, the Bengaluru police have not shown the seizure in a chargesheet filed the following month. The chargesheet related to the illegal hacking activities of the hacker Srikrishna alias Sriki, 26.

One of the primary reasons for a cloud of suspicion of corruption around cases involving the hacker — which has now become a source of concern for the BJP government in Karnataka —is the disappearance of these 31 Bitcoins. The whole episode has highlighted the lack of protocols and expertise within the police in handling new age crimes involving crypto currencies and the dark net, police sources said.